Lawn maintenance comprises very many practices, and scarifying is one of them. To scarify is to use a special machine that looks almost similar to a lawn mower but has sharper rotating blades. These blades cut the grass and go deeper into the topsoil, thus spreading soil on the ground. Typically, your lawn will not be as beautiful and green as it was earlier. A scarified lawn looks terrible, and this is very normal.
You need not overstress yourself over the appearance of the lawn after the scarification process because it will heal in just a few weeks. Once it heals, it will appear greener and more elegant than it was before.
If you have a lawn and have scarified it for the first time, you must be worried too much about its appearance. To understand why your scarified lawn looks terrible and if there is anything you can do to control the situation, keep reading to find out more.
Why does a scarified lawn appear ugly and terrible
A lawn in good condition should be green and with short well-balanced grasses that form a continuous uniform landscape. When the lawn is mowed and cleaned, it appears even more elegant and gives visitors a glimpse of how beautiful and conservative your entire home is.
However, this may not remain the same over months and years. The lawn requires proper maintenance. Mowing and cleaning may not be the only maintenance practices.
There are times when you will need to see new grass shoots. The new shoots are usually more green, healthy and beautiful. Basically, people will scarify a lawn to rejuvenate it and make it bring forth new grass shoots.
It is a way of reviving an old lawn by cutting and disposing of the old and unhealthy grass cuttings and waiting for new grass shoots. It will take about six weeks for your lawn to get back into its beautiful green state.
Reviving a lawn after scarification
If you feel uncomfortable with your lawn and are thinking of how to save it, you can consider doing the following practices. However, it is important to know that the practices below will not immediately rescue your lawn; they will only help it grow strong and healthy grasses when it comes. It will still take some weeks for it to look beautiful again.
1. Water your lawn
To help your lawn recover, watering is essential. In regard to your local weather conditions, add adequate water to your lawn to make sure it does not dry off completely. The watering can be done mainly in the first 14 days to prevent the roots from getting shocked by the new weather because they no longer receive food from leaves. While watering, do not overwater the struggling lawn as this can cause root rot of the entire lawn.
2. Topdress with soil
You can level off the lawn by adding soil in open areas after removing thatch and dirt from the lawn. The new soil should be fertile, supplying nutrients to the grass as it sprouts. You will need the new soil and a rake to help you spread the soil evenly on the ground.
3. Overseed
You can sprinkle grass seeds into areas that are completely open to help boost the grass density and speeds up the thickening of the grass once it starts to grow. You should be keen when selecting grass seeds because you can only reseed grass with the seeds initially grown on the lawn.
The soil is usually loose, and the new seeds will root very fast in the ground and grow to produce fresh grass. Seeding a lawn is not a difficult thing. You will only need grass seeds, a seed spreader container, and maybe a small hand trowel.
4. Fertilize
If you wish to have a healthy, lush lawn, periodic fertilizer application is necessary. Fertilizer with high nitrogen and phosphate concentration. The fertilizer will help the new seeds to grow healthy and greener.
While choosing a fertilizer for your lawn, consider the time when your lawn was scarified. For instance, nitrogen-based fertilizer does well in lawns scarified in spring.
5. Mow The Lawn
Mowing your lawn after scarifying helps eliminate tuff and lifts loose thatch and moss, and generally helps level the lawn.
Scarified lawn looks terrible: Conclusion
If it is your first time having a scarified lawn, you may be surprised by how terrible it appears. However, this should not worry you because the lawn will get back to normal after a few weeks.
You can consider the tips above to ensure that your scarified lawn gets even better than the old lawn when it starts to grow.
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